A Rose For Emily
by AudiLion
Summary: Emily can't stand Downstairs anymore, so she goes to Elder Gutknecht for a potion so she can enter The Land of the Living. When she is given the potion, Elder Gutknecht doesn't get the chance to tell her that she must recieve a rose from her one true love in a certain amount of time or else she can never return to the Land of the Living again.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: No I'm not dead! Sorry about not updating in A LONG TIME but I've been busy! And soon I'll be busier because instead of volunteering, I'll have a real job. But for now I've just finished with my marathon of Tim Burton movies and the last one I watched was "The Corpse Bride," which is one of my favorite movies of all freaking time! So anyways, I should start writing…. Oh, Happy early Thanksgiving!

_Emily can't stand Downstairs anymore, so she goes to Elder Gutknecht for a potion so she can enter The Land of the Living. When she is given the potion, Elder Gutknecht tells her that if by chance she meets her One True Love, she will be able to live up above. Will Emily find her One True Love? And if she does, will she be able to have her second chance?_

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters of "The Corpse Bride" no matter how much I want to.

This is Un-beta'd so far.

A certain blue-haired woman sat sullen on a bench high-up from the bustle of Downstairs. Emily just couldn't take it anymore, the pretending that she was happy down here even though Downstairs was a very festive and joyful place. She thought often of her past, of when she was alive and thought nothing could go wrong until that one fateful night. She had her life taken away and cut short because that one man, whom she thought she loved. had decided to be a greedy bastard.

Emily looked up when she saw Scraps, the one person- or thing, that could actually make her smile. "They there boy!" She said with a wide smile while scratching underneath his chin. Scraps barked and wagged his tail eagerly. With a chuckle, Emily scratched his spot. The corpse had found the dog when it was just a box filled with bones and a red collar with the name of the dog and it's owner. Ever since then, it's like Emily is Scraps' owner. The animal cocked it's head in a worried way and barked questionably, as if to say 'Is everything okay?'

"No boy, everything is not okay…." Emily said gloomily. Scraps poked her chest comfortingly and whined. Emily gave him a sad smile and gently plucked him off her lap to set him on the ground. "I'm going to visit Elder Gutknecht," she said before standing up and gracefully walking to Elder's place.

Upon arriving, Emily heard Elder Gutknecht say, "My dear child, something is troubling you," said the old skeleton. He hobbled down the great steps made of books and rapped his worn-smooth cane against the rickety floor. "Care to tell me what it is?" He asked.

With a sigh, Emily spilled. "IwanttogoUpstairs!" She said, Elder almost missing it completely.

"And why do you want to go Upstairs?" He asked, fully aware of the reason.

"I- I need to know why, Elder. I need to know why Barkis did what he did to me. And I also miss the moonlight, and the feeling of wonder. Elder, I miss everything about Upstairs. I know you think that I should give Downstairs a chance, but I have. I'm not happy here. Is there anything you can do Elder Gutknecht? Please?" The corpse pleaded, nearly falling to her knees to beg if her cries didn't work.

The old skeleton rubbed his beard for a minute and nodded with a grunt. "I think there is one thing that will work, but I warn you-" Elder started before Emily interrupted.

"Yes! Please Elder?" The dead woman said as she clutched her hands to her chest in anticipation.

"Let me finish girl! I was going to warn you," Elder Gutknecht stated as he climbed to his alter, "that there is a catch if you go back up to the Land of the Living."

Emily looked puzzled, watching Elder as he set up the potion for her. "Well what's the catch," she asked as he handed her an old gold goblet filled with smoky red liquid. It smelled like a flower, but Emily couldn't quite place her finger on which one.

"When you drink from that cup, you will be given seven days time to live in the Realm of the Living. But if by chance you meet your One True Love you will have a second chance to live your life until you die once again," Elder Gutknecht said. "If your One True Love-" Elder started, but stopped when he saw Emily dunk her head back, drinking the bitter liquid.

"Bleh.." Emily spat, the taste sticking to her tongue. Elder was about to protest but it was too late now. "So what happens now?"

"Patience child.." He said right before a powdery cloud of blue started to swirl around her. The winds twisted her dress between her bones and leg and her midnight blue hair began to tangle in the dried, dead flowers of her crown.

"Wha-" She started before collapsing to the ground, fainting. Elder Gutknecht watched while shaking his head. Right before she drank the potion, he was about to tell Emily something incredibly important. But it was too late now and there was nothing he could do to reverse it.

Emily woke up, her breathing hard and quick. "Wait…. " She spit out. _I'm breathing… I'm BREATHING! _Emily scrambled to sit up, and when she did she was hit with incense dizziness. _And I have a pulse… _She slowly stood up, lifting her mother's old wedding dress up to look at her leg. "It's.. A leg! Not bones anymore." Her hands flew up to the spot in her rib cage that was exposed, but she only felt warm, soft, smooth flesh in it's place. Emily let out a gasp and she started laughing. "Oh thank you Elder!"

Emily ran, losing the flower crown and veil along the way. She ran to the crick where her dad taught her to ice skate and skidded to a stop. She looked into the ice, using it as a mirror and she gasped in response. She stared at herself, remembering. Emily touched her soft black curls, and looked into her ocean blue eyes. Her skin was a peachy color and her cheeks were rosy from the cold. A tear fell onto the ice and she smiled, her deep red lips framing her straight teeth.

She looked up when a twinkle caught her eyes and saw her old home in the distance. Biting her lip, Emily slowly headed in that direction. After a while of walking, she heard a voice. It's owner was saying… Vows. And oh so beautifully. Emily followed his voice to a tall, slim man with dark hair.

Emily heard a snap and when she looked down, she saw she had stepped on a twig. The small sound caught the attention of the man and looked to see Emily with his darker than night eyes.

"I'm sorry!" She squeaked.

Victor just stared at the woman in her stunning beauty. Lovely dark hair and the most gorgeous blue eyes. But he then thought of Victoria and scolded himself. "It's fine. Are you alright?" He asked her, taking notice of her ratted clothes.

"Oh I'm fine!" Emily smiled and waved her hand. "You are?"

"I'm… Victor." He managed after getting himself together. "And you?"

''Why I'm Emily. Emily Knowles."

A/N: So what did you think? Yay? Nay? Okay? Well whatever it is, R&amp;R and I don't care about flames. Haters can hate.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hello, hello! Okay last chapter, I started writing before Thanksgiving and I forgot to add that at the end of of the chapter. But oh well! I'm trying to keep up! That counts right? I'm so sorry it's taking me so long. I'm just plain lazy. I don't have the will to think up an excuse. At least I'm honest right?!

Emily was led back to the tiny town of Bellingham by Victor, who would glance back her every few seconds. She was looking around at the beautiful setting, her gaze full of delight and amazement. "I've been in the darkness for so long, I've almost forgotten how beautiful the moonlight is," Emily whispered under her breathe. She wasn't sure if Victor had heard her or not, but at the moment she could have cared less.

But Victor had heard her, and her statement puzzled him much. He was interrupted in his thoughts by the Town Crier, announcing the engagement of himself and Victoria Everglot. He became nervous all over again just thinking about his predicament and the incident this morning.

"Well hopscotch*, Victor, I should have realized you were betrothed!? Who is the lovely maiden?" Emily said, feeling that she should have realized this sooner.

"Her name is Victoria."

"Oh, Victoria is such a beautiful name," Emily gushed and sighed. Victor watched her from where he stood and was dumbfounded by the young lady. He thought her so pretty, just like dusk. Where the stars twinkled lightly and the sun was setting in the east.

"Yes, it is very much so," he replied to her comment. They were walking down Cobblestone Main street, the first glimpse of sunrise light touching the old, worn stone. Emily smiled and swished the large, navy blue skirt of her dress over the ground. She hadn't realized she had arrived in her favorite dress from her earlier life. The dress was floor-length and was hemmed in black lace. Her shoulders were bare but her arms were covered in the navy blue cloth. The dress also showed off her sizeable bosom.

As the early birds walked past and the salesmen set up for the coming day, all eyes were on her. Victor realized that she was completely oblivious to the stares. He stepped up the walkway to his parent's large home, but tripped over the top step. He thought he was going to land on his face but that was before he heard Emily gasped and caught his arm. She helped him stand up, his face red in embarrassment. "I-I'm so sorry. I'm terribly clumsy!" He hastily apologized.

Emily laughed and shook her head. "There is no need! I understand wholeheartedly what it is like to be a bumbling mess. I'm one myself!"

Victor smiled, feeling reassured and opened the great French doors to the Van Dort household. Mrs. Van Dort was walking down the grand staircase and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Emily. "Dear! Won't you come here for a moment?" She called to her husband. He soon walked down to stand next to his stout wife, the both of them watching their son fraternize with such a lovely woman as Emily. "Can it possibly be her, can it?" Nell whispered to William. The Van Dort parents conversed in hushed tones until William cleared his throat, catching the attention of Victor and Emily.

The two young ones looked up and Emily smiled and curtsied. "It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Van Dort." Nell and William bowed in reply and glanced at their son who looked a little uncomfortable.

"Mother, Father, this is Emily Knowels. I encountered her in the Vidia Forest." Victor introduced his new friend.

Nell looked at William and back at Emily. "Do you parents happen to be Nicklaus and Lee Knowels?"

Emily nodded and brushed her hair back with her hand. "Yes they are," she said shyly.

"Oh goodness child they have been looking for you since you had disappeared! They have been worried sick. Come come to the kitchen." Nell ushered her further into the house.

Meanwhile in the Everglot household... "How could our family have come to this? To marry off our daughter to the nouveaux riches?!" Maudeline ranted to her fat husband. He simply sat there chewing on his cigar.

"Hm? Sorry dear.. But we must in order to sustain our current living situation. Yes yes they are impossibly annoying peoples, but we need their money." Finnis commented.

Victoria was sitting in the lounge room, looking at the small ring she was to wear tomorrow. Lord Barkis silently walked in and brushed his fingers across Victoria's shoulder like a shark swimming around a wounded seal. "My dear, please cheer up. You will be wed tomorrow to the man of your dreams."

Victoria sighed. "I just don't want to be arranged into a marriage. I want to find love first, but that's not acceptable according to my parents standards. I want there to be a sign to show me that this is either wrong or right.. I think I'll go for a walk." Barkis was about to interrupt but instead stay seated and let her walk out.

"She will be mine.." He muttered under his breath miserably.

A/N: * I'm using hopscotch as Emily's little quirk word for when she is surprised! I use the word squash so I thought why not? ANd sorry I updated so late! Again, I'm just super lazy.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: A Rose for Emily

A/N: So it's been a while. (Because my mom took away my computer..) And during that time, I kept thinking maybe this story was bad but I got a lot of great reviews and now I'm happy! So here goes Chapter 3!

Barkus scowled as he ripped the dusty curtain back to its place, making the room dark and dingy again. His mind was spinning, it was her. _Really her_… He thought he had killed her. No wait, he **HAD **killed her! He had made sure! And yet there she was, walking and laughing with that scum of a person. He now knew that he either had to kill that scoundrel off, or run away. Although running away didn't seem like a bad idea, Barkus's pride took the better of him. He grinned an eerily creepy smile, forming his fingers in a steeple. He knew just how to make it look like an accident.

Meanwhile, in the Van Dort mansion Emily spun a tall tale of where she had been all this time. "...looking for him, but alas I realized I would never find him. So I left and came back home." She wiped away what looked like to Nell a tear of sadness when really Emily was angry. Her emotions were taking over and she had to excuse herself from the room and she rushed to the farthest room.

Emily quietly forced the great wooden doors shut behind her and picked up a pillow, screaming silently into it. She heard the clicks of footsteps and then a few knocks.

"Miss Emily, are you alright?" She heard Victor's muffled, soft voice through the doors.

"I'm fine!" Emily called back and sat down sobbing. Victor opened the doors and awkwardly bounced back and forth on his feet. His mother had made him come down here but he insisted he had no idea what he was doing. Somehow, with her, he did. He picked one of the dried, sweet roses from a vase and gently sat next to her.

"I told you I was perfectly fine," she snapped harshly.

Victor jumped at her tone, but then eased. He twirled the flower between his forefinger and thumb, the momentum making some of the pale petals fall to the floor. She watched him intently, slowly calming down.

" I'm quite sorry. About what happened to you, I mean." Victor finally said after a time of silence.

Emily shrugged and sighed. "Some things happen for reasons unknown. This was one of those moments."

Victor nodded politely and stood up, walking towards the piano. Emily gasped, not knowing it was in here. She must not have seen it in her rage. She watched as Victor sat down and warmed up his fingers. Sour and Soft notes flowed out of the instrument, and Emily laid on the couch and stared at the ceiling. Music swirled around her head and into her ears as she nodded off to sleep, the familiar sounds of Downstairs flooding her dreams.

Victoria paced back and forth, waiting for Father to arrive when her father steps in. She jumped at the sound of slamming doors and dropped her eyes to her father's level. "Victoria my dear! Your mother and I have excellent news!" He waddled in, Lord Barkus behind him. Barkus walked around her father and snatched her hand into his and kissed it. Victoria pulled her hand back quickly as if his lips were venomous fangs. A vague look of disgust crossed over her face but it disappeared just as fast as it came.

"You're to marry Lord Barkus in a fortnight. You hear me young lady?" Victoria's mother snapped as she clacked into the room. Victoria gasped and sputtered. "W-What!? I absolutely will not!" The three argued on and on and as it came to a close, Victoria grew much more fearful as Lord Barkus became much more smug. He knew they would never let their little girl marry some twat like Vicky*.

Victor sat there in his study, looking out the window to Victoria's. He could see that she and her parents were in the middle of an argument, which was a common sight. But oddly, he then saw Lord Barkus. He was looking straight at Victor with a menacing grin. Chills ran down his spine. "I wonder what that was about?" He asked himself as he got back to work in his journal, completely oblivious to what his unknown nemesis was planning.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Please don't be mad… I'm seriously trying to keep up with everything going on it my life. So here is a rundown of what has happened in my life in the past few months.

-I got early acceptance into my top choice college.

-I work all the time…

-I'm currently taking two dual credit classes in my senior year.

-My best friend moved away :(

-I just wanna sleep

So that's about it. I'm boring XD Besides the Xerox story I'm working on (summary in bio)

* * *

Emily awoke in a bedroom unlike her normal one Downstairs and started in a panic. Her loud gasp had alerted the chamber-maid and the little woman hurried inside. "Miss Emily, are you alright?"

Emily nodded and smiled. "Peachy, dear. Thank you for asking. If you don't mind my asking, could I have a cup of tea?" The maid nodded and hurried back out, giving Emily time to breathe. "Now I have to wake…" She grumbled and rolled out of the large bed. Walking over to the wardrobe, Emily picked out a simple yellow dress from the array of colors.

A knock at the door alerted her that her morning tea was ready and opened the door. "Thank you so much, Edna. This tea is much appreciated, considering I've been feeling a tidbit under the weather." Emily chuckled and gracefully swished past the older woman with a smile.

Enda shook her head with face of disbelief. "What a bizarre girl."

As Emily pranced around the Van Dort house, Victoria tossed and turned in a restless sleep in the house across the cobblestone street.

'_Victoria ran as fast as she could, picking up the torn remnants of her white dress. Her feet were pasted in mud and leaves and her cheeks were flushed from lack of oxygen. She seemed to be running from something._

_She slowed to a jog while looking back behind her, not seeing a sight of her pursuer. The girl felt as if she could relax and breathe again. Her tired legs took her to a large tree, where she slumped to the dirty ground. Victoria closed her eyes for a short time, until she felt hands around her neck._

_Her eyes snapped opened to see the face of her capturer and she tried to scream, instead a gurgling choke escaping. _

_The man picked her up off of her dainty sitting spot and held her in the air against the tree until he himself got tired of waiting for her to die. He dropped her like he was disgusted and sighed._

"_I guess I'll have to do this the bloody way…" He murmured._

_Victoria laid crumpled on the ground sobbing, her vision going black before he could stab her in the chest.'_

Victoria awoke with a startled shout and clasped her chest to reassure herself she was alive.

"Oh dear, Mother and Father would believe me to be insane. I mustn't tell them of anything," the young lady criticized herself as she rustled out of bed to wash.

* * *

Lord Barkus had invited Victor out to a luncheon at the Everglot Gazebo, to discuss manly responsibilities as he put it. Barkus watched as the few servants set up the dining area in a casual fashion, leaving him to himself as they rushed back to see to the food. Barkus smirked devilishly and pulled out a small vial of clear liquid. The fair-haired gentleman poured a candid amount of the liquid in Victor's wine glass.

"That should kill the rat off now…" He muttered and tucked away the vial. He seated himself across from the empty glass and took a sip of his own wine, a smug expression hidden behind the rim.

Victor was let out through the house to the back patio to the gazebo where Lord Barkus awaited him. "My sincere apologies, Lord. I would hope you understand the importance of work and that responsibilities must be done before fun." The dark-haired man piped pleasantly.

Lord Barkus nodded his head solemnly. "Of course, my young friend." Barkus's mind wandered to a certain woman. "If you wouldn't mind my intrusion of your family privacy, but who is the lovely lady taking residence at you home?"

Victor looked up in surprise from his glass of wine, not having taken a drink out of it yet. He cleared his throat and wiped the corners of his mouth before answering.

"I'm assuming you're referring to Miss Emily… Why yes, quite lovely. She happens to be residing in the Van Dort presence for a short while as her family has gone on a voyage and we are keeping her safe company until they return. Most a dreadful story she told Mother, Father and I after we found her."

Lord Barkus stiffened as Victor told the other man the twisted lie Emily had created to keep both Barkus and hers old habits behind closed doors. The older gentleman was grateful the wench kept her mouth shut, but now he knew for sure she was back. He grabbed his goblet and downed it, unsatisfied and bristling with menacing thoughts of murder.


End file.
